Richard's PBeM Server (Monthly Post)

From: Richard Rognlie <rrognlie@eiss.erols.com>

Date: Mon, 02 Sep 1996 00:00:00 +0000

Richard's PBeM Server (pbmserv@eiss.erols.com) exists so that we can
play a variety of games by eMail. The games currently supported are:

Abalone Andantino Ataxx and Hexxagon Backgammon Chess, QuickChess,
Capablanca and GrandChess Connect4 Connect4x4 Connexxions Dots and Boxes
Entropy Gomoku Hex Jungle Lines-of-Action Neutron Oddthello Othello
Pente and Keryo-Pente Philosopher's Football Plotto Quadrature Qubic
Renju Rings Score4 Spangles Survival Susan Tanbo, Tanbo3D and Hexbo
Terrace Trax and StdTrax Tug-of-War TwixT

To play games via the PBeM Server, send mail to pbmserv@eiss.erols.com
with the command as the SUBJECT line.  Use the signup command to
choose a PBeM userid and password.  It may be anything you wish
provided if contains no spaces, quotes or colons. As a matter of form
the name should be based on your real name. Popular methods include
using your first name by itself, or prepending your first initial to
your last name.

GAMES SUPPORTED:

Abalone

On a hexagonal board (radius 5) two to six players have armies of
   marbles. Players take turns "pushing" 1, 2 or 3 linearly connected
   marbles, attempting to push their opponents' marbles off the board.

The players take turns attaching pieces of their color to two or more
   other pieces (in a hex-like lattice) in an attempt to form a line of
5
   or more pieces of their color in a straight line, or to fully enclose
   a group of one or more opponents pieces.

Ataxx and Hexxagon

On a 7x7 board, the two players of ataxx fight to controll a majority
   of the board via growth and jumps that flip opponents pieces to their
   color.

Hexxagon is Ataxx played on a hexagonal board of radius 5.

Backgammon

A classic. Backgammon via eMail.

Chess, QuickChess, Capablanca and GrandChess

Chess is the classic game. QuickChess is a variant played on a 5x6
   board. Capablanca and GrandChess are variants with 2 extra pieces on
   8x10 and 10x10 boards respectively.

Connect4

On a 7x6 board, two players alternate dropping their pieces from the
   top of the board, down a column, attempting to form four in a row.

Connect4x4

On an 8x8 board, two players alternate inserting their pieces from
the
   edges of the board, across a row or up/down a column, attempting to
   form four in a row.

Connexxions (Copyright? David Gale)

On a 13x13 board, players take turns connecting posts of their color
   in an attempt to connect their sides of the board the board while
   preventing your opponent from doing the same.

Dots and Boxes

On a 7x7 board, players take turns connecting the dots to form boxes.

Entropy is played on a 5x5 grid. Each player starts with 7 pawns and
   tries to scatter them about.

A player wins if all 7 of his or her pawns are uncharged and
   unisolated, unless the 7 opposing pawns are also uncharged and
   unisolated, in which case the game is a draw. If neither player can
   move and no one has won, the game is a draw.

Gomoku

On a 15x15 board, the two players of gomoku try to be the first to
   create a line of 5 or more stones in a row of their color.

Hex

On a 11x11 diamond board, players take turns placing stones of their
   color on the board. The object is to connect your sides of the board
   while preventing your opponent from doing the same.

Jungle

Jungle is sort of a cross between Chinese chess and Stratego. It's
   popular in China as a children's "stepping-stone" to Chinese chess.
   It's also an interesting game in its own right. elated Help Subjects:
   Jungle Jungle.rules

Lines-of-Action (LoA)

The object of the game is to move all your pieces into a
configuration
   where they are in a single group connected horizontal, vertically, or
   diagonally. Pieces may move horizontally, vertically, or diagonally,
   but they must move exactly the number of spaces as there are pieces
on
   the row they are moving in. You may not jump over opponent's pieces,
   nor may you land on your own piece. If you land on an opponent's
   piece, it is captured and removed from the game.

On a 5x5 board, the two players of neutron fight to either move the
   neutron to their back row or trap it so the opponent cannot move it.

The winner is the player who is able to trap the neutron or gets the
   neutron to his or her own back row. It does not matter if it is your
   opponent who moves the neutron to your back row -- you still win.

Oddthello

On a dynamic hexagonal lattice, two players play othello without a
   fixed board. And with 6 directions for tile flipping.

On a 8x8 board, the two players of othello fight to control the
   majority of the board by outflanking and flipping their opponents
   pieces.

Pente

On a 19x19 board, the two players of pente try to be the first to
   create a line of 5 or more stones in a row of their color *or* try to
   capture 5 pairs of their opponents stones. You capture a pair of
   stones any time you sandwich the stones between a pair of your
stones.

Keryo-Pente

On a 19x19 board, the two players of keryo-pente try to be the first
   to create a line of 5 or more stones in a row of their color *or* try
   to capture 15 of their opponents' stones. You may capture 2 or 3
   opponents' stones any time you sandwich the stones between a pair of
   your stones.

Philosopher's Football

On a 19x15 board, players take turns either adding men to the field,
   or moving the football. The football moves by jumping lines of
   adjacent men (and removing them from the board). The object is to
move
   the football to (or past) your goal line.

The players take turns placing one hex shaped piece in turn onto an
   open space (no board). Pieces are numbered either 1, 2, 3 or 4 and
you
   may play a piece of any number at each turn. The object is to place a
   pair of pieces with your number in a straight line with two pieces in
   between.

Starting on opposite sides of an 11 by 11 board, players take turns
   moving their checkers a single space forward, diagonally forward or
   sideways. Quadrature employs a unique aggressive maneuver called
   "squaring". To "square" your opponent, you move to form a rectangle
on
   the board with four checkers: three of your own checkers and one
enemy
   checker. Upon doing this you "convert" the enemy checker to one of
   your own, by removing it from the board and replacing it with one of
   your surplus off-board checkers.

Qubic

On a 4x4x4 grid, two players alternate placing their pieces,
   attempting to form four in a row in any direction.

Renju

On a 15x15 board, the two players of renju try to be the first to
   create a line of 5 stones in a row of their color.

On an unusual hexagonal board, the players of Rings, place pieces on
   the board in an attempt to convert other pieces to their color and to
   control the more rings than any other player.

Score4

On a 4x4 grid of pegs, two players alternate dropping their pieces
   from the top of a peg, down a column, attempting to form four in a
row
   in any direction.

The two players of Spangles take turns adding triangular pieces of
   their color to the board in an attempt to create a 4 piece triangle
   with their pieces as the three corner pieces.

Survival is played on a hexagonal board made up of 19 numbered
   hexagons. Two players take turns placing pieces on the board with the
   "arrow" of the piece dictating the direction in which the next piece
   played by that player must be played. The first player who can not
   move loses the game.

On a hexagonal board (radius 5) two players take turns placing or
   moving a marble in an attempt to completely surround a opponent's
   marble with a combination of marbles.

Tanbo, Tanbo3d (Copyright (c) 1995 Mark Steere) and Hexbo (Copyright (c)
    1996 Rognlie/Steere)

Played on a 19x19 Go board, Tanbo crudely models a system of plant
   roots. Roots which are growing, competing for space, and dying. In
   beginner play, the roots grow much as the roots in a garden. Over
   time, the roots become shrewd and calculating.

To win, a player must eliminate all eight of his opponent's roots.
One
   player will always win. It's impossible to repeat a board
   configuration in Tanbo. Therefore a game cannot result in a draw.

Tanbo3d extends the game of Tanbo into three dimensions.

Hexbo is Tanbo played on a hexagonal board.

Terrace is played on an 8x8 board consisting of 16 'L' shaped
   terraces. Two corners of the board are "High" and the other corners
   are "Low". Each player has pieces of 4 sizes ('A', 'B', 'C' and 'D').
   'A' pieces are the smallest, 'D' pieces are the largest. 'T' pieces
   are the same size as 'A' pieces and are each player's "key" piece.

The object of the game is to capture your opponent's "T" or move your
   "T" to the lowest square on your opponent's side of the board.

Trax is a game played with square tiles. Each tile is identical to
all
   other tiles, one side has a white line connecting opposite edges and
a
   black line connecting the other edges, and the other side has a white
   line connecting 2 adjacent edges and a black line connecting the
other
   edges. The object of the game is to create a loop of your color while
   preventing your opponent from doing the same. An alternate winning
   condition is to create a line extending from one edge of the board to
   the opposite edge of the board when the board is at least 8 tiles
wide
   (or tall). StdTrax limits the board to 8x8. Trax is actually
SuperTrax
   and the board grows to accomodate the game as needed.

Tug-of-War (ToW)

Up to four players take turns placing "bids". High bidder gets 1 goal
   point from each other player. First player to take an average of 5
   points from each other player wins.

TwixT (Copyright (c) Avalon Hill)

On a 24x24 board, players take turns placing pegs of their color on
   the board. Any time a peg is placed a "knight's move" from another
peg
   of the same color, a strut is placed, connecting them. A strut can
not
   cross over (through) another strut. The object is to connect your
   sides of the board while preventing your opponent from doing the
same.

--
  /\/\/\  | Richard Rognlie / Internet Developer /
Erols.COM
 /  \ \ \ | E-Mail: rrognlie@erols.com
 \  / / / | Phone:  (Home) (703) 361-4764
  \/\/\/  | WWW:    http://eiss.erols.com/~rrognlie/